EXCERPT
American investors should not be financing Communist China’s military buildup. On Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order to prevent just that and protect American security. The order bans individual and institutional investors from owning shares in 31 Chinese firms that provide the Communist regime’s armed forces with ships, planes, and cutting-edge technology. This action is long overdue.
For years, Communist China has relied on American money to fund its military modernization. Investors looking for strong financial returns – everyone from mom-n-pop stock-pickers to pension funds – have plowed untold sums into the direct purchase of Chinese stocks or mutual funds that purchase those stocks. Yet many of these companies are owned, controlled, or otherwise influenced by the Chinese military, as a Department of Defense report made clear earlier this year.
At the time of publishing, Marion Smith was executive director of Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.
Originally published in Real Clear Defense.